Senkensha
by riseofthewolf
Summary: Young ANBU Kakashi finds out that he is a Senkensha, a Seer. During the Fourth Great War, everyone discovered that Kakashi, Itachi, and Gaara are only living Senkensha in the world. Much like the Jinchuriki, there is a group after them, a group more powerful than the Akatsuki. In Kakashi's POV, it starts after Rin dies, before the Kyuubi Attack, when Kakashi joined ANBU.
1. Chapter 1 Kakashi

Blood dripped slow, trickling down his side. Pale ivory armor was crusted with red-brown, but his breathing was even and silent. The mask of a wickedly snarling wolf was sideways on his head, parts of it splattered with thick red liquid. A slender katana was held in his grip, the silver blade dripping with blood.

A whisper of wind whirled past his hair, rustling the silver strands. Cold eyes peered out like shards of hard but breakable ice.

Moonlight shone down, illuminating his pale skin.

Discarded bodies of men laid crumpled in the red snow.

"Leave no traces of Konoha."

They phased. There was no disturbance.

One bored, interchangeable-colored eye peered out, the other hidden under a metal-plated cloth. The air was cold, yet he left his shoulders exposed, his blood-colored ANBU tattoo displayed on his upper left arm.

Gai waved frantically at the slouched teen, but his mask was too new; he radiated frigid ness; it would take time to carve out a carefree persona, to exude the lazy aura he would soon be known for.

The teen ignored Gai and the other people sitting with him, hands dug deep in his standard-issue jounin pants. There was nothing he could say, his words choked in his throat.

If he went to sit down by them and have dango, he was afraid they'd see past his carefully crafted mask, see how tainted and disturbed he was. It was better for them.

"He is still so cold... Yondaime-sama originally got him to join ANBU to let go of his coldness and sad heart... but I don't think it's helping him at all..."

Gai.

"Yeah, the darkness... but do you really blame him?"

Asuma.

"You mean his teammates? But they were our classmates and friends, too! And he still has his sensei..."

Kurenai.

"He's Hokage, though... he must be busy, especially since he married Kushina-san."

Gai.

His ears heard them all, and the camaraderie between Gai and his teammates made him wistful.

His apartment was a cold place, all blank and white, the only thing showing that a living being was living there was two pictures and the bloodied weapons clattered in the sink. One picture was of his genin team, the other of his parents.

The bed was made to every last wrinkle, completely smooth and straight. He had OCD; actually, he had a whole list of issues, but what good shinobi didn't? A small, unnoticeable smirk.

Oh, how screwed up he was. A lifetime of therapy wouldn't be able to fix him.

"Lighten up, 'Kashi!" Obito said cockily, one hand on his hip, the other cupping those ridiculous orange goggles of his.

He blinked. Obito was gone. A hallucination? What would sensei do if he found out one of his top ANBU had a hallucination? Send him to a psych ward to rot.

Ha, if Obito could see him now... see how he'd wasted away to this pathetic _thing._ This _shell_ of his former arrogant self. A bitter smile crossed his lips briefly, concealed by the darkness of his mask. He turned. There was nothing for him there.

His keen ears heard footsteps leading to his door. The faint scent of warmth and cinnamon crept through the wall. He opened the door. A crimson-haired women paused in the middle of knocking.

"Argh!" she said cheerfully, "Curse your good shinobi senses!"

Despite himself, he found that he had a small smile twisting his masked lips.

"Hello, Kushina-sama, come in."

"No, no, none of that formal crap. Call me Kushina! After all, your father was my senpai."

His polite smile stiffened.

Oblivious, Kushina went on, "So, since it's your birthday, I was wondering if you'd come to our house to eat dinner!"

Looking at him quickly, she hastily added, "I mean, I know you don't like celebrating and stuff, but Minato and I were really hoping to- like- ya know- to be with you, dattebane! 'Cause like, you're gonna be ten and that's huge! Your first two digit number! And I'm gonna get your favorite, ya know, and this apartment is so small and empty. Not that there's anything wrong with it, dattebane! But birthdays are special and stuff, and-" she babbled frantically.

Amused, Kakashi swiftly interrupted her before she could bust a vein, "I'd love to go."

"- it's the day you were born, dattebane, and-" she paused, "really? I mean, there'snothingwrongwithyougoing, andyouwon'tbeanybother, dattebane, and-"

"When?"

"Seven!" Kushina beamed, flushed slightly.

"I'll be there. Thank you."

~ It was 6:30, and Kakashi was beginning his trek to the Hokage Tower. In a way, Kushina was sort of like a mother to him. She was always letting herself into his apartment, and bringing bento lunches to him.

She had this bubbly warmth that made you want to be near her, this charisma that drew you to her. Minato and her truly deserved each other... just as he himself deserved nothing.

Rin...

People died around him. He had to keep a distance from Kushina... Minato... Gai, and his friends... what was he doing, going to his sensei's house?

He cleared his mind.

'Minato-sensei said it wasn't your fault,' he reminded himself.

He got to the building and jumped up to the open window. They really did know him well.

"Hello," Minato said cheerfully, "I'm glad you came! Happy birthday, 'Kashi-chan."

The dining room was decorated with white, green, and navy blue streamers, the table overflowing with platters of food.

Kushina always did go overboard with food.

"Kakashi! Happy birthday!" Kushina poked her head from the kitchen, wiping her hands off with a towel, "I'm not done yet, but-"

Really? What more did she have to do?

"I can help," Kakashi offered, walking over to her.

"No!" Kushina bellowed, her bright red hair flying up ominously, a dark aura radiating from her, "It's your birthday! Stay put- sit down!" She shoved Kakashi away from the kitchen, "It's a surprise!"

Wordlessly, Kakashi sat down.

"Yeah... it's best you listen to her when she's in a mood like this," Minato whispered to the teen.

"What did you say?" Kushina turned slowly.

"Nothing! Nothing at all, dear!" Minato got up quickly, making placating gestures at her.

"Huh. Good."

Under his breath, Kakashi muttered, "whipped."

Minato turned a teasing glare on him, "you would be too, if you had Kushina as your wife."

But secretly, Minato was glad Kakashi had spoken up. A few months ago, he would have stayed silent. He appreciated how Kakashi had tried to change.

"WHAT?"

"Nothing, sweetheart!"

~ Knowing his dislike of sweets, Kushina had baked him a simple vanilla sponge cake with fruit toppings- no frosting or special filling. But even then, it was too sweet, but Kakashi choked it down without complaint, especially since he'd just eaten Kushina's special miso soup with aubergine.

Minato had complained about it not being sweet enough, but one glare from Kushina was enough to quell him.

"Here!" Kushina gave him a lopsided, lumpy gift. It was wrapped with bright orange and red wrapping paper, hastily taped together with yellow duct tape.

"I couldn't find the clear tape, dattebane," Kushina said sheepishly.

Minato gave him a more neatly wrapped box, navy blue and white, folded neatly and smoothed of creases.

"Kushina wanted to wrap hers by herself," he said in a way of apology.

"It's alright. Thanks," Kakashi smiled his first genuine smile in a long time. For someone who rarely got gifts like these in his childhood, things like this was a new concept to be reviled in.

"Well? Open it!" Kushina said impatiently.

Carefully, to not ruin it, Kakashi neatly ripped the tape off and peeled back the bulky layers of gift wrap. Kushina grinned excitedly, watching his expression.

There were two blades.

Kakashi unsheathed one of them. He lightly traced the complicated swirls of the dagger's hilt.

The steel was a mirror finished 440C high chromium martensitic stainless steel and a O1 high carbon tungsten-vanadium steel, judging from scent. The guard was probably made of a diffusion welded copper and silver- the union of the two metals complete on the atomic level, fused into a solid billet, yet it retained it's individual characteristics. The handle was a comfortable leather, the pommel capstone a black nephrite jade gemstone, diamond, some sort of agate, and aquamarine- recognized only because of a mission to Suna. There were symbols on it, probably courtesy of Kushina's special seals.

It was the most beautiful and complex blade Kakashi had ever held.

The sheath itself was a rare black ray skin inlaid in a leather shoulder. It was amazing.

"The craftsmanship is gorgeous, isn't it?" Kushina stated proudly, "blue lace agate, aquamarine, nephrite jade, and diamond that you can fuse with your chakra to make it stronger- or you can store chakra in it!"

"My turn!" Minato smiled mischievously, "it isn't quite as good as Kushina's gift, but it's pretty close!"

The silver-haired boy set the blades aside and gently pried the paper wrapping aside. There was a old, worn wooden box, with the kanji ' _Memory Box: Kakashi and Minato_ '. He began to open it, but Minato grabbed his wrist.

"Eh-?" Kakashi turned.

"It literally takes you to my memories of you when you open it," Minato explained, "but only two times. I was trying to figure out how to make it limitless, but so far, I was only able to make it happen two times. When I find out how to make it limitless, I'll redo it!" Minato beamed at the wordless boy, "do you like it?"

Minato was only half surprised when Kakashi threw himself at Kushina and him, wrapping them into a hug with his thin, pale arms.

"Thank you."


	2. Chapter 2 Kyuubi

**A/N**

 **This is the summary, and if you want, I'll put this at the bottom instead of the top.**

 **Young ANBU Kakashi finds out that he is no normal shinobi- he is a Senkensha, a Seer. During the Fourth Great War, it is publicly discovered that Kakashi, Itachi, and Gaara are only living Senkensha in the world. There can only be at most seven Senkensha in the world at the same time, and the last Senkensha dated back more than five hundred years ago. Much like the Jinchuriki, they are coveted, and there is a group after their powers, a group more powerful than the Akatsuki.  
** **In Kakashi's POV, it starts after Rin dies, before the Kyuubi Attack, when Kakashi joined ANBU.  
** _ **Warning: Timeline Mixup, Alive!Itachi, Spoilers, God-like Kakashi, Gaara, and Itachi, and maybe some feminization.**_

 **DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO**

 **Thank you. Now on to the story! :)**

It started out as a normal day. Kakashi was flipping his birthday daggers from five months ago. He'd just come from two back-to-back missions- each a month long. His leg still had a gash, a few of his ribs cracked.

He couldn't remember the last time he'd been 'perfectly healthy'. On the yearly updated paperwork he'd turned in, he'd lied about his weight because he'd been around ten kilograms under the necessary minimum required for an active shinobi his height.

He was eleven, and around hundred and thirty-six centimeters, twenty-two kilograms. It wasn't _that_ bad. But he _could_ stand to gain some weight.

The air was cool and dry.

He spun the daggers again, catching them and throwing them up again absentmindedly like he was juggling, careful of the blade. He caught them again and admired the silver blade, fusing white-ish chakra into the hilt for later use- chakra exhaustion was common for him, and the extra chakra saved in the hilt could one day save his life on a mission.

Unfortunately, while his white chakra was stronger and was unlimited, it was extremely hard to control much like bijuu chakra, and most blades combusted in contact with pure white chakra- the only one that didn't was the White Light Chakra Sabre. So he fused his regular chakra with white chakra when storing it into his daggers.

But his tranquil surroundings was disrupted by one frantic Yondaime Hokage.

"I'mafather!" The blonde screamed in a garbled mess.

"... What?" His response was flat.

Minato inhaled to gather his wits.

"Kushina is pregnant," Minato said slowly, as if talking to a child.

"Congratulations, sensei," Kakashi gave one of his rare genuine grins. He imagined a little blonde or redhead, toddling around and demanding for Kakashi to take down his mask in a true Kushina fashion. He would probably be saddled with baby-sitting the little brat. Would it be a boy or a girl?

Minato got serious, blue eyes darkening.

"I know you just got back, and I'm really sorry, but I have another mission for you. Meet me at the office, ANBU regime."

With that, Minato hiraishined off.

Kakashi quickly shed his shorts for the standard-issue ANBU gear. He strapped his weapons in place, katana on his black, daggers hidden in his forearm armor. He slipped his mask on his face, and he left with no disturbance.

Kakashi appeared in front of Minato in a swirl.

"When did you learn-? Never mind..." Then Minato grew serious again, "as you know, Kushina is a jinchuriki."

Kakashi nodded.

He'd smelled the fox in her before _he_ had died; she'd come over to practice something-or-another with _him_ , and he had asked innocently why she'd smelled like a vixen.

She'd paled drastically, and then young toddler Kakashi had leaned over and whispered conspiratorially that he wouldn't tell _him_ that the 'big mutant orange bunny with the funny red eyes' was in her tummy.

"When pregnant, the energy usually directed to maintain the seal and subjugate the bijuu is channeled to the fetus, leaving the seal drastically weaker. When Mito-sama, the jinchuriki before Kushina, gave birth, the Kyuubi almost forced itself from her body. As you know, when a bijuu is ripped from the host, the host automatically dies because the chakra twined together was too close, so when the bijju is taken out, essentially half of your chakra is ripped apart, especially since the host have grown to depend on the bijuu. Because of this, I want you to watch her- whether it is to the bathroom or to the market, I want to to protect her 24/7. I know I taught you some fuinjutsu- and I also know you studied more on it. I know you aren't a great seal master, but you know more than enough.- more than an average shinobi. Get me when you think something's wrong. This mission is Unranked, and it starts now. Dismissed."

He left in a whirl of electrified wind.

Kushina was walking cheerfully along the streets of Konoha, smiling and greeting the awestruck civilians and shinobi.

There was no bump in her stomach.

Kakashi flitted in the treetops, eyes probing for threats.

She peered over a necklace. It looked like a carbon copy of Tsunade-sama's necklace, except the stone was jade, not chakra stone. Kakashi stiffened when her back was exposed, the paranoid ANBU persona kicking in.

Sharingan exposed, he flitted closer- not enough to be seen, but enough to have a better field of view. Mentally, he charted all possible escape routes and all the jutsu he could use in the space without harming civilians. There wasn't much. He didn't know much about pregnant women- what could rile them up? Could he carry her the regular way, or would he harm the baby? He would need to do research...

Kushina left the market and was humming cheerfully as she walked, her green dress immaculate.

Kakashi crept after her.

~ It was a fine evening. Minato was at home, Kushina laughing by his arm. It was a warm March day, but Kakashi was still slinking in the shadows, eyes gazing melancholy.

A small bump could be seen on Kushina's stomach. Kakashi's senses were stretched as far as they could go- which was pretty far. He heard Kushina tell Minato she had to go to the bathroom, and as soon as she left the room, Minato flickered outside to Kakashi.

"I backed off when you were there, so you can be intimate," Kakashi said indifferently.

"Yeah..." Minato's face flushed slightly, "you can come inside, you know."

"...This is a mission."

"You can protect her better-" the toilet flushed. Minato gave him a apologetic look and flickered back inside.

Kakashi stayed out.

~ It was a October morning, and Kushina's stomach was enormous. The baby was due today, and Minato had allowed Kakashi a break.

Kakashi had reluctantly agreed- but the air felt strange, different. There was a light chill in the air, a coldness that no one else seemed to feel. His senses were warning him, but Minato-sensei would've felt it, right?

Kakashi allowed Gai to rope him into another challenge, this time a taijutsu one. Gai may have been behind him at everything else, but taijutsu was one thing that he appreciated Gai for. That boy was a taijutsu genius. They had tied.

Since it was one of the few days they were both off duty at the same time, Kakashi spent the day with him, the air growing heavier as night approached.

At around 8 pm, Kakashi had his first vision.

 _ **The sky was dark. The feeling of unease was growing. Wind blew lightly, the brightness of the village illuminating. Kakashi looked around. Something was wrong. His instincts was screaming at him. Suddenly, harsh cutting-edge wind thrashed at him. Fusing chakra to his feet, he glared against it.**_

 _ **Something large, red. Something he'd only ever seen in books.**_

 _ **The Kyuubi no Youko.**_

 _ **There were screams as tails thrashed, and demonic fire was unleashed.**_

"..ashi... Kaka... Kakashi... Kakashi!"

 _What... was that...?_

Kakashi was jarred back to the present.

"What happened?" Gai's eyes were unusually serious, tone slightly concerned. His usual jovial grin was wiped from his features.

"...What?"

 _I_ don't _know what happened..._

"You just stopped walking, and your eyes glazed over, and you didn't respond to my voice for a second!" Gai elaborated.

"..." He didn't know what to say. _What was that? The Kyuubi? How? Why? Ill have to do some research..._

Gai knew when to stop. If he kept probing, Kakashi would only close off more. Maybe later...

For the rest of the day, they just wandered, occasionally sparring and stopping for food and water, Kakashi's feeling of unease growing more and more as the day went by. _Something is wrong..._

As the sky began to darken, Kakashi had to ask. His senses were going haywire!

"Do you feel that? There's a chill in the air..."

"What?! The only chill..."

Kakashi tuned out the rest.

On the other side of the village, Itachi felt it too, and comforted a crying Sasuke, as babies were hyper-sensitive as well. Itachi had no visions yet, but he could still feel that something was strange.

"Don't cry, Sasuke... " Itachi cuddled the baby, "your big brother will always protect you..."

 _What a day for Mother and Father to both be out..._

Kakashi shoved his hands in his pocket as he cut off what Gai was saying, "Why don't we just do rock paper scissors again?" he mumbled.

"What?! Your..."

Kakashi sighed. Sheesh... one would think that he'd insulted his mother...

Then, just like the vision, wind swirled harshly. Civilians were blown away and shinobi rooted their feet to the ground, arms braced to cover their faces.

There were screams.

"The Kyuubi!"

"Save us!"

Gai immediately whirled into position, screeching out a battle cry.

"Stop!" A jounin flung out his arm at the friends.

Kakashi paused. _What...?_

Wasn't that Kurenai's father?

Gai screamed out protests.

"Be quiet! Sandaime-sama has ordered it so."

 _...What about sensei?_

Kakashi and Gai followed Yuuhi-san to the barrier that he'd constructed around the other youths.

"You must stay out of the fight, " Shinku-san told them.

"What?! But- " Kurenai reiterated.

They then proceeded to have a family moment that included the Will of Fire, which Kakashi was not all that interested in. How could they talk about these things when Minato-sensei could be out dying? He needed to go... he was ANBU!

"I am ANBU," Kakashi said abruptedly, elbowing his way to Kurenai's father.

He looked saddened, but not at all surprised, "Fine. Go, then." He created a hole through the barrier.

As Kakashi left, he heard Kurenai.

"What?" she complained, "why can Kakashi go?"

"He is ANBU. ANBU are under direct control of the Hokage- no one else can order them but their captains and they protect Konoha through exceptional threats- like now. None of you are ANBU- you cannot go."

"But he's so young!"

"Age does not matter. Only skill."

Part of his apartment complex was ruined. The area surrounding it was reduced to rubble. Kakashi strapped on his ANBU armor and slid out the tanto. He had not used it since Obito's death, too ashamed of himself to dare think he was worthy of it. It was true it had shattered, but he'd fixed it easily enough by fusing pressurized white chakra through the pieces.

He clamped the tanto between his teeth and grabbed his daggers before running out again, foregoing his mask.

The Kyuubi.

Large and fiery orange, grotesque fangs shining, crimson eyes glared balefully below.

With a yell, Kakashi released chakra through a dagger and slashed at the beast. A wave of white-ish chakra shimmered, and months worth of accumulated chakra lashed at the Kyuubi.

It gouged deep into the Kyuubi, and he roared in pain. He snarled at Kakashi, glancing at the bleached fur and shook himself off before swinging a claw at him. Kakashi leapt up, but the resulting wind blasted himself off his feet.

He rolled to absorb the impact and knocked his head hard. He blacked out for a second.

Blearily heaving himself up, he winced, vision swimming as nausea threatened to make him fall again.

Apparently, the mixture of his regular chakra and white chakra did the trick, judging from the kitsune's roars. But half a year of compiled chakra had only made a cut on the Kyuubi. Unlike the other wounds, which had healed right away as the Kyuubi was made of condensed chakra, apparently white chakra was 'special', and could create lasting injuries upon the bijuu.

Suddenly, a rust-red toad fell on the Kyuubi's head, a dosu blade by his side and a kiseru pipe hanging from his mouth.

Sensei must be here!

Kakashi released the last of his chakra from the other dagger, the arc of energy ripping towards the bijuu. It created a gash across the beast's neck, but it looked shallow.

The Kyuubi bellowed and thrashed.

Suddenly, the fox disappeared, leaving the great battle toad to fall.

No!

Kakashi looked around frantically, placing the daggers into their respective sheathes and taking the tanto from his mouth.

Did Minato-sensei use his translocation jutsu?

Kakashi raised his nose and inhaled, sorting through the thick smells of blood, dust, and flames. He tried followed the thickest smell of fox and fire and malevolent chakra leaking hatred.

The scent of death was too strong.

"Kakashi!" Yamanaka Inoichi ran to the boy. He took a quick glance at his bleeding head and scuffed armor.

"Sensei..." Kakashi wavered, "Where...?"

He blacked out.

 **A/N**

 **I'm sorry about this, but since I'm kinda new to making stories, you'll have to be patient with me. Last time, I forgot about disclaimers and warnings and stuff, so I put it here now. Also, I'm not very good and updating and checking this, so I'll just warn you now.**


	3. Chapter 3 Aftermath

**A/N**

 **PLEASE READ THIS! IT'LL CLEAR UP A LOT OF ISSUES!**

 **Some of you are upset about Kakashi's age, and I am sorry. However, Kakashi became chunin at the age of 6, and in the anime, Obito, Rin, Gai, and etc. were depicted in the chunin exams along with him. And since they became chunin when they were 10, I surmised that there was a notable age difference between Kakashi and the others, so I made him 4 years younger. I am sorry if you don't like this, but they never said how old Kakashi was when he became jounin, so this is how I will depict him.**

 **In addition, I'm not sure if you guys caught this, but in chapter 1, I made him turning 10, and in chapter 2, it was 5 months after his birthday, but he's 11. I'm extremely sorry, but I decided he was turning 10, not 11. Again, I'm extremely sorry, and I'm making his eyes 'multicolored', as in changing colors, so it'll be blue or gray or black at different times, because in the anime, his eye color isn't consistent, it was black at one point, then gray, then gray-blue, so I'm sorry.**

 **Also, I made the Secret ANBU war because logically, I don't think that other villages would stay put after the village was trashed and the current Hokage dead. Personally, I think they would attack and try to invade Konoha, but after the Kyuubi, an open war would upset everyone, so Sandaime made the war a secret for only the ANBU to participate in.**

 **If you dislike how I am doing this/writing this, then I suggest you find another fic or make your own. If you wish to remake this or use something from this, then please inform me and ask for my permission. I am sorry if this seems rushed, but I'd written this through tests and finals so it is probably not of best quality. Please tell me your opinions, but flaming is not appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed. Once again, I am sorry if you are upset about my decisions and this long A/N.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

 **If you have any questions about the use of Japanese words, please feel free to ask or tell me to put translations directly in the chapter. Thank you, and please review! :)**

Cool October wind rustled the flaps of the tent.

It was October 16th, and Kakashi had just woken up from his six days of unconsciousness. People were hard at work around him rebuilding the village. It would be an excellent time for any neighboring village to attack Konoha, even small villages like the Sugi Village.

Kakashi sighed. It all seemed so surreal. Sensei and Kushina was gone. They had a son they would never see. A son that had the Kyuubi residing within him.

...The poor soul...

Would the next Hokage allow him to adopt the child?

...Who was the next Hokage? Did Sarutobi retake the title?

Kakashi got up carefully and pulled the door of the tent back.

The village was destroyed.

"No..." He hadn't realized he'd said it out loud. What would happen now?

The once bright Konoha was reduced to gray rubble, destroyed street signs laying in ruin.

"Hatake-san!" a medic ran towards him, "You should be resting!"

Then an ANBU intercepted her, "Sandaime-sama requires his presence in the Hokage Tower."

Kakashi nodded swiftly, and with all the grace of a child-soldier, he phased.

~ "I am here today because Kusagakure and Iwagakure has allied and attacked our Northwest border."

All the ANBU stood with stony faces, arms rigid by their side.

"They think we are weakened by Yondaime's death, and the Kyuubi's attack.

Because we are...

"And another war so soon would quake our village and rid the civilians of their confidence, and they may move away to other villages. And no shinobi village can function without the civilians for trade. But a war is inevitable, and it is clear we cannot avoid it. Thus, I declare this the Secret ANBU war. Normal shinobi will not participate- nor will they know there is a war unless there is direct threat to the village. Likewise for the civilians, though the trading routes for Iwagakure and Amegakure will be closed and discontinued, as par war. Most of the ANBU will be stationed in the border between Ame and the Land of Fire. Please report to the assignment room for your mission. Dismissed."

Another war...? No...

Kakashi bit his lip underneath the mask but followed obediently.

~ Fireballs lit up the dank gray surroundings before fading to the heavy rain. Their platoon was in deep in Ame- in the borders of Amegakure itself. Their objective was to smother trade routes to Amegakure, but the enemy shinobi had pushed them in and surrounded them.

Wolf(Kakashi) pushed Hawk out of the way and dove for cover as an exploding tag flew towards them.

Rain ran down their masks and plastered their hair to their soaked faces.

The explosions threw them off their feet, blasting them in a shock wave of dry heat.

Heat seared Wolf's shoulder and he grimaced as he clutched his daggers. No comforting wave of familiar chakra reached him.

...That's right... he used it up in the Kyuubi attack. He had not gotten the chance to recharge since then because of the war.

...Does Gai and the others miss me...?

But now wasn't the time to think of that- not when he was in the battlefield.

Wolf raked his sword down and unleashed a wave of rippling wind- the blade of wind jutsu native to Sunagakure.

It slashed into three Iwa shinobi, spraying red to the air, the harsh metallic scent permeating his acute nose.

He didn't even flinch- his heart cold to everything- especially when his porcelain mask was on.

Red splattered on the masks of his comrades.

A newbie flinched.

Heh. They just keep getting younger, eh? Of course, no where near the age I was.

The Secret ANBU war was no where near the scale of a Great Shinobi War, but it was no less brutal.

Rain washed the crimson away as Wolf and the rest of his surviving team got rid of all the bodies. Rat and Bull had died. Wolf snatched their dog tags before setting their corpses on fire.

Everyone in ANBU was expected to wear dog tags- the only means to remembrance for family members or friends because most ANBU died in the line of duty and had their bodies burned.

1 of of 2 ANBU was KIA or MIA. (Killed in action or Missing in action)

1 out of 5 ANBU was crippled or maimed.

1 out of 7 ANBU went insane.

1 out of 4 ANBU didn't last for more than an year before said above things happened.

... The odds weren't on his side.

~ "Mission completed- a success," Kakashi spoke softly, "2 casualties- Rat and Bull." He wasn't team captain, but Rat had died, so he assumed control.

The dog tags were flung to Sandaime-sama. They clattered on the old wood of the desk and the Hokage sighed deeply. So many casualties. If this kept on, the war may have to be exposed to the everyone.

"You are to immediately report to the Northwest border as backup for Team Ei and Team En," Sandaime felt exhausted. He did not want to send out Kakashi's team right after they'd came from a rigorous mission and lost two teammates, but he had no choice. They were the only team that could help.

"...Hai, of course. The coordinates?" Kakashi asked.

The Hokage nodded and gave him the mission scroll.

Hawk, Lion, and Lizard phased.

"...Well, Kakashi?"

"About Naruto..."

"I'm sorry. People will make the connection. ... You are forbidden from contact with him."

Kakashi's eyes flashed an angry steel, jaw stiffening under his masks.

"I-"

"Your team is waiting for you."

He paused, and his cold ANBU persona slid to place.

"...Of course, Hokage-sama," Wolf bowed and phased.

"I'm sorry... Minato, Kushina..." Sandaime lifted his head, staring into the picture of Minato, imploring him for help. His sapphire blue eyes were frozen in the picture.

'I have failed you. Kakashi is only twelve years old...'

The ground was dry and cracked, but no dust flew up as the silent ANBU raced across the earth.

Wolf's sensitive nose twitched and he raised his left hand slightly, motioning.

The others paused. His hand went through a flurry of gestures.

B-L-O-O-D

C-A-R-E-F-U-L

S-O-L-O S-C-O-U-T

The ANBU disappeared from sight.

Death saturated the air. While it was not good to be slowed down- this much blood this close to Konoha and the Capitol was worth investigating.

Wolf flitted from shadow to shadow, midnight blue eyes sharp, mouth a rigid line. He paused.

A pallid hand stuck out under a bush, dark sticky liquid drenching waxy green leaves.

Wolf took out a wooden stick and small scroll from his vest pocket and unfurled the scroll before swiping the stick on the blood and placing it on the blank white paper.

 _Kai!_

 _Seal!_

Dark markings appeared on the scroll, the character 血 under it.

Chi. Blood.

He placed the scroll back into his pocket and brushed the branches of the bush aside.

"Shit."

The cracked mask lay hollow as the shinobi disappeared.

Swords clashed and rang in the silent stillness of the forest. They were close to the borders of the grasslands, the ANBU hyper-sensitive that they were one step away from foreign territory.

It seemed that Iwa and Ame had followed Konoha's lead. Only their ANBU fought them, but they had more numbers, because 2/3 of their ANBU had perished in the fight against the Kyuubi. Even if Konoha had won the last Great War, their military might was weak right now. They were just lucky that Kumo and the other Great Countries had not decided to enter the war. Yet.

Wolf twisted to avoid a wave of water, and swiped away the senbon some Ame ANBU had sent his way.

They were retreating back to Konoha, Wolf's team guarding the backs of the other teams.

Fire came down like rain.

"Ambush!"

Wolf turned, "I'll be decoy. Lead En and Ei to Konoha."

Lion paused. He was the oldest, and seemed to think of his team as his family, even if he did have four children at home.

But he did not try to stop Wolf, "If- _when_ you come back alive, I'll make sure you become Captain."

Wolf did not answer.

Hawk and Lizard nodded curtly at Wolf, as if saying goodbye.

Wolf inclined his head, and left.

He fought to keep his breathing still and regular as he raced through the forests, heading east. Wolf's led most of the ANBU off and picked up the rest of the stragglers that were wary of him.

Wolf stopped in the middle of a clearing. He had nothing to live for.

 _Gai... Asuma... Kurenai...? No. I cannot. This will be worth it._

His family and team was gone. He couldn't contact Naruto. This could be his final battle.

Daggers slipped into his hand, the blades glinting. Hopefully, he could stall them long enough for Konoha ANBU to arrive home safely.

"...Capture him alive," the ANBU at the back said.

Wolf readied himself.

They sprang at him.

Wolf tilted his head just so that the foot of a random enemy nin flew past him harmlessly as he grabbed the arm of another to throw him into his comrades and stepped off to the side and kicked one simultaneously.

But their numbers over-powered even him, and as chakra chains began to wind around him, he knew he was a goner. Sure, his taijutsu was impeccable, but his stamina left much to be desired for, especially against all of the ANBU.

Holding out his hand, lightning chakra arced across the open space in the shape of a bladed staff. It solidified and Wolf swept out the feet of several, consequently shooting electricity through their bodies.

Kicking out, Wolf jumped backward to hopefully gain some space in-between him and his opponents before he tried his final jutsu, allowing the staff to fade. It took way too much chakra to maintain.

Marked as forbidden, the jutsu used the body of the user as the 'outlet' of the force. It was a lightning styled ninja art that the White Fang himself had created so that a shinobi could die taking out their enemy.

"Kinjutsu- Raiton: Kowareta Gisei no jutsu!" Wolf hissed. It literally meant:

 _Forbidden Art- Lightning style: Broken Sacrifice._

"Stop him!" an ANBU snarled.

But Wolf's body was already emitting a faint electric-blue color, eyes- even the sharingan- turning into such a bright blue it appeared almost white.

The last of the chakra chains slipped around Wolf's body and the ANBU raised their hands in the seal of the tiger.

"Kai!"

 _Seal._

The chains glowed and began to steam.

"Captain! Is that supposed to happen?" a newbie asked the lead ANBU nervously.

"...His chakra is strong," the ANBU answered carefully.

Glow fading, Wolf slumped over, spent.

"We have finally done it. Bring him back, ANBU."


	4. Chapter 4 Capture

**A/N**

 **I'm sorry, there will probably be no romance for this story. And, I am not certain Alexandria's Genesis is real, but I am including it in this story. It will not follow canon much. Thank you for all the reviews. I've been writing this chapter as fast as I could, but I have a slight writer's block, so I will apologize in advance if this chapter is not up to your standards.**

 **If you dislike how I am doing this/writing this, then I suggest you find another fic or make your own. If you wish to remake this or use something from this, then please inform me and ask for my permission.**

 **Please tell me your opinions, but flaming is not appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed. I am sorry if you are upset about my decisions, and if you read it and like it, please let other people know about it! PLEASE REVIEW! It is how I know you like my fic, and so I will continue writing it. Thank you. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I am neither male, nor is my last name Kishimoto. (Kishimoto is male, right?)**

 _Trying desperately to earn his praise._

 _It was not my fault when I found him stone-cold dead in our house. It was not my fault. It had to be._

 _I reached out my hand, eyes a cold black. I hoisted Obito back to his feet._

 _Our ridiculous arguments, Rin trying and failing to stop us._

 _Blood slashing up, ruining my eye for eternity._

 _Obito crushed under the rock, gone forever. He was not with me. They always try to reassure me, saying that he is in my heart. He's not. He is rotting in the Land of Grass, many kilometers away from home. We had not been able to retrieve his body._

 _I am walking forward, to the darkness. Behind me, I feel Obito lingering, reaching towards me; trying to bring me back. Too late._

 _Brothers separated only by blood. And death._

 _Rin in Nirvana by my own hand. Chidori- the ultimate assassination technique, created by a caged nine year old, imprisoned by his memories, by the war, by his village, by the expectations that he could never quite seem to meet._

 _Minato-sensei and Kushina; KIA- I was too late. I am always too late._

Wolf woke up with a start, clear teal eyes dilated, muscles sore, chakra levels practically nothing.

He was held in a dark place- a cellar of some sort that was dripping with water. There were no windows- the door solid metal.

He heard storming outside, thunderous booms and the sound of breaking wood and creaking walls loud to his sensitive ears.

Thick chakra chains was wound over his limbs, chest, and neck, pinning him uncomfortably to the wall. The chains didn't just suppress his chakra, it siphoned it away. Luckily, it didn't seem to drain his white chakra, only his regular one.

Focusing, Wolf shot white chakra through his skin into the chains. He had to be careful to not use too much too fast- it was like Bijuu chakra.

Lightning crackled visibly along the dark metal. The chains began to smoke, but seemed otherwise unharmed.

Narrowing his eyes, he shifted and searched his surroundings for anything he could use to get out.

 _My white chakra had never failed me before. Have they intentionally studied it... made specialized chains for Bijuu or Bijuu-like chakra like Kushina's seal? Then they must've known about my white chakra. But only a few select people know about it. How...?_

Wolf looked over the chains to see if there were any seals. While most of his limbs were double-jointed, the chains seemed to be tied specially. He tried dislocating some joints, but to no avail. He was firmly entrapped in the bonds.

Sighing, Wolf sat back. There was nothing he could do but wait and try to store chakra, which was a rather difficult challenge seeing as the chains drained it.

The door clanged open. A silhouette of a slim girl appeared, flanked by two teens that seemed to be maybe 17 or 18 years old.

The girl had auburn curls, pale skin, and light, translucent green eyes with a calculating glint. She was no fool.

"Ah. One of Alexandria's Genesis victims," the girl said with satisfaction. It was clear who the leader was.

"Truly, My Lady? His eyes are too blue," the lady with copper hair said.

"It's an unique manifestation of the mutation," the girl explained callously.

 _What is Alexandria's Genesis? I have never heard of it._

As if reading his mind, the girl turned to Wolf and said, "Alexandria's Genesis, or violet eyes, is considered a genetic mutation that causes the eyes to turn from blue or gray to purple for around the following six months after they have been born. During puberty the color is said to deepen to a royal or violet-blue purple, but will not affect the person's ability to see. Those that have this mutation never grow pubic, facial, body or anal hair excluding that on the top of their head, ears, eyebrows, eyelashes and noses.

"This condition can cause a variety of symptoms including shimmering white skin that is immune to burning or tanning. People claim that those with this mutation can live up to 150 years with aging stopping around 50, are immune to most diseases so they rarely become ill and are immune to most diseases. Neither do they gain excessive weight, or produce much waste; regardless of how much they eat."

"I don't have this," Wolf said. His voice was harsh and raspy, "I do not have violet eyes."

"True," the girl nodded, "But they certainly look violet-blue, and you have all other symptoms. Besides, the fact that you have white chakra makes you useful anyway."

"...What is your objective?"

"Immortality, boy," the girl smiled coldly, "Immunity to illnesses, and living up to 150 years while aging stops at 50? Imagine what I could do."

 _The way she said 'boy'... she is older than she seems. Could she have partial immortality?_

"Then why does white chakra matter?"

"In the legends-" the girl stopped abruptly. She paused, cocking her head as if listening to someone. Then she paled, and muttered something under her breath. The girl's escorts opened the cellar door.

As she whirled around to leave, Wolf called, "Who are you?"

She turned her head just so that only one peridot eye could be seen.

"I am known as Lady Hisui."

The door clanged shut.

~ Wolf was given food twice a day, and let out twice a day to go to the bathroom. So far, they had not done anything yet, but he could tell it would be soon.

Lady Hisui's guards turned out to be Amejisuto and Mizugameza. Amejisuto had hazel eyes and obsidian black hair with semi-pale skin. Mizugameza had big, watery gray eyes and pale, platinum blonde hair. They both wear dark gray cloaks. Amejisuto apparently had a younger sister that was dying of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Wolf felt no pity, though. Many people died every day.

The door clanged open. Was it already time for a meal?

But this time, it was not Amejisuto or Mizugameza. They wore hoods that cast shadows over their faces.

They undid his manacles and brought him roughly out the door. Leading him down dark halls, they heaved him into a sterile white room and strapped him on a flat, metal table.

Lady Hisui hovered over him, snapping white gloves on.

Looking over to the side, Wolf saw metal instruments. Was it torture? He could deal with that.

Hisui flexed her hand, "Envision all the secrets I can unlock," the look in her eyes was mad, hungry, "I could do so many things.

"Oh yes, _you_ never amount to anything, despite whatever your puny village says... what are you, without your mask? What are you, without the Sharingan that you stole from the friend you killed?"

Wolf strained in his chains, snarling, "You- don't'- know- _anything_!"

"Do I?" she looked amused, "I have connections. More information than you could ever _dream_ of!"

She took hold of a scalpel, and plunged it through his open hand- into his palm and out the other end.

Sharpened canines bit into his lip, leaving a pearly drop of crimson blood trickling down his chin.

She pulled it out slowly, and did the same to the other hand.

Wolf didn't make a sound.

"No screams? I'm disappointed," Hisui smiled almost kindly, her childlike face crinkling slightly. She sighed slightly, and took a vial. She collected some of his blood in it, then ran poison-green chakra over the gaping holes. Her medical ninjutsu was rudimentary at best, her chakra control terrible. The wounds sealed reluctantly, blood still leaking out at the edges.

Hisui scribbled on something. Then she turned and picked up a pile of paper. As she looked through her notes, she nodded and chewed on the end of her pen.

After more 'tests', she said, "I see... Mimatsu! Run some tests on this. I'm going to extract some chakra."

A young teen with golden hair and sapphire blue eyes ran in and took the phial before running out again.

Then Hisui reached into her shirt and took out a necklace.

With narrowed eyes, Wolf took note of where she had taken it.

The necklace was a cloudy green gem bordered with silver, hanging from a thin silver chain.

She held it close to his chakra chains and began to chant quietly.

 _"Վեր կաց, բարձրանալ, եւ եկեք ինձ մոտ, մուտքագրել այս եւ ֆիլտրում իմ հոգու. Թույլ տվեք զենք ու զրահ, թող ինծի այդ իշխանությունը."_

The chains began to glow and blue-green chakra flowed into the gem. Then the chakra slowly faded to white.

"Yes..." Hisui breathed, "What power you possess! I want it all! I want-"

The gem exploded. The shock wave made Hisui crash into the wall and made the chakra chains and bindings break. Glass shattered and tables overturned.

Alarms began to screech.

Wolf picked himself up shakily and ran for it, picking broken glass from his skin. Bare-foot and bare-chested, he crashed through panicked shinobi.

"What are you doing?" came Hisui's voice, "Do you know how hard it is to find a specimen like him? Stop floundering over to me, you half-cocked fools! Get him!"

Wolf ran faster, blowing past startled people and slowly gathering up chakra. He winded down corridors and skidded past doors.

Kunai and shuriken rained after him.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, still running.

A fireball came soaring past him, accompanied by slicing wind.

Expanding the little chakra he had left, he caste a large radius of thinly filtered chakra. Eyes still closed, he veered into a wide hall and with highly-concentrated white chakra, blasted through a wall.

Seeing a forest, Wolf checked for any genjutsu, then jumped on a tree. He bolted.

~He ran for what seemed like hours. From what he could tell, he was in the border between Kusa and Ame.

He wiped sweat from his bare face and raised his head slightly to sniff.

They had long ago strayed from his trail. He was safe.

... For now.

He had to go to a nearby village and ask where exactly he was. Wolf looked down at himself and sighed. He was half-dressed, and his ANBU regulation pants were torn and stained with blood and other unidentified liquids.

Wolf sighed to himself.

 _It appears I have to waste more chakra in a genjutsu._

Like his sensei, Namikaze Minato, he knew how to find life forms through sending pulses of chakra underground. Of course, it helped if one had earth release.

Bending down, Wolf placed one finger on the forest floor and vibrated chakra through the earth.

There was a large mass of people directly south.

Wolf got up. And shot off.

A nondescript man with messy brown hair and plain brown eyes arrived at the gates of Kosaka, which was nestled in forests. The economy of Kosaka was largely based on agriculture and forestry and seasonal tourism, so it was not strange to see random strangers within the village.

The man, Sato Haruki, was humming cheerfully as he idly swung a gray knapsack. He wore common, dull work clothes and sandals.

A guard stopped him, and before he got a chance to speak, Haruki interrupted him, "This village is mighty beautiful! What say you?"

The guard ignored him, getting right down to business, "Where are you from?"

"Do you always treat tourists this way? You could at least provide a name! I'd say-"

"Where do you come from?"

"OK- sheesh! Kusa. Why?"

The guard backed off with a glare and a mumble, "I swear, he has a strange energy buzzing around him...

"I'm sorry sir, just precautions. What is your name? I am Suzuki Riko."

"Of course, no need, Suzuki-san! I'm Haruki! Sato Haruki." Haruki let him off with a easy grin.

Riko nodded at him and backed off.

"Jeez... just my luck to meet someone familiar to chakra..." Haruki, or rather Wolf, said with a sigh.

Wolf went to a nearby store to ask directions to Hayakawa, a village he knew that was not too far from Kusa, senses on high alert.

An elderly woman running the shop gave him a free caramel candy and an map with directions.

"Thank you so much! It was a pleasure to meet you." Wolf proclaimed, a dopey smile on his face.

"Oh no, it is mine. It is not too often I meet a kind young man such as you willing to talk to little old me. It gets rather boring here at times since my poor husband died. Everyone is so busy nowadays, no time spared to talk to me. Why, it's been..." the women, Hinowa Miyuki blathered on.

Wolf plastered a fake smile on his fake face. He'd tweaked his facial structures and eye shape so no one could trace him.

 _A kind young man? If only you knew who I really am..._

He pretended to eat the candy, only to throw away the caramel in a potted plant. It could be poisoned, and he didn't like sweets anyway.

"Well, Miyuki-obaa-sama, I'd best to be on my way," Kakashi began to back off.

"Why of course! Visit again soon, and bring that little sister of yours you were talking about before!" Miyuki called after him.

"Definitely!"

 _What a lie, that is..._

Wolf left the village without a backwards glance.


	5. Chapter 5 The Rings

**A/N**

 **Yes, I know the kidnap scene was ridiculously short and unrealistic, and yes, I know I have been away for more than an year.**

… **I have no excuse. I am so, so, sorry. As an avid fanfic reader myself, I know how frustrating long wait times and short updates are. I reread my past chapters and saw the worst mistakes- however, I am unsure as to how to fix it. Currently, I am typing it up in my Wattpad account, as it is easier to update and edit there, but I have not made it public as of yet. If you wish me to, it has the edited version.**

 **I have the author's block- it is so ridiculously annoying. I know what I want to write, but I don't know how to get there. Not only that, but I have recently been sucked into other fandoms… I would love it if someone betaed for me. Currently, I am writing alone, and I have not been catching even the most obvious of mistakes.**

 **Disclaimer: I am not genius enough to ever be able to come up with Naruto.**

He made it at the gates of Konoha at 3 am. His wounds had reopened again, so he was trailing blood down the streets.

...It would be a pain to clean up later. He almost felt sorry for the genin who would have to scrub the streets.

Kakashi slipped into the Hokage Tower and stood outside the doors.

"Come in."

He gently pushed open the office doors and knelt at the front of the desk, one arm resting on a knee, the other positioned on the ground.

Sarutobi was there, shoulders hunched over, looking as if he'd aged 10 years. He was facing the windows, stacks of paperwork still on his desk. Sandaime gazed over the dark village, the faces on the Hokage Mountain barely visible.

"Kakashi. You were written down as MIA. You have been gone for a month."

He nodded wordlessly and placed a scroll on the table.

Without looking back, Sandaime reached and took it, unfurling the contents.

"Ah. Yes. Alexandria's Genesis. I see, " the Hokage sighed wearily and finally turned.

There were dark circles under his dark brown eyes, and his skin was pale and taut.

"Report to the T&I Sector. Dismissed."

~ "Ahh! Kakashi! Where were you? They said that you were missing on a mission! But I told them! I told them you would come back!" Gai screamed, waving his arms around energetically.

"..." Kakashi pushed past him.

"Kakashi," Gai reached out, suddenly solemn, "Kakashi. At least tell me what happened."

"I..." Kakashi turned. He pushed aside his shadows for now and said as coldly as he could, "I was sidetracked. In a village."

"..." Gai looked solemn, "It is a time of peace, now! No need to act so serious! There is no war to fight. Let us help."

 _No war? ...That's right... for them, the war is over._

"...I don't need help." _Least of all from you._

Kakashi walked away, stuffing his hands in his pocket. The Hokage had called for a meeting for the ANBU at Headquarters.

All of the ANBU were assembled at the Main Hall of Headquarters, a sea of blank masks stoically facing the Hokage.

It was rare for all of the ANBU to be at the same place at the same time, as they were usually on missions. Especially in the turbulent times of war. It only happened if a new ANBU Captain or Commander was chosen, or if a Secret War was declared, or if there was a great tragedy, or other unforeseen circumstances like the Kyuubi attack, which didn't happen often.

Kakashi stood to attention. Lion was dead, he had discovered, in an cleverly hidden ambush that had taken four other ANBU lives.

Too many deaths that Konoha couldn't spare. At this rate, the Hokage might be forced to include the standard troops instead of just ANBU.

As soon as Sandaime-sama appeared, shadowed by his guards, the meeting started.

"We are here for a promotion," as blunt and steady as ever, "ANBU Wolf."

Behind the mask, Kakashi blinked, but shunshined straight in front of the Hokage in a crackle of lightning and leaves, already in the standard kneel.

"Stand."

Kakashi rose slowly.

One of the Hokage's guards passed the Hokage a white cloak, as opposed to the regular black ones distributed to all ANBU, regardless of whether they chose to wear it or not.

Sandaime-sama in turn held it out to Kakashi. He took it carefully, bowing his head.

"ANBU Wolf. New Captain of Team Ro."

~ Team Ro were soon ranked as the best elite ANBU units in the entire history of Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai.

Space in Ro were coveted. They had the best mission completion rank with the least casualties. Entrance to Team Ro meant that Captain Wolf, possibly the strongest and greatest ninja in the whole of ANBU, second only to the commander, thought you had the guts to make it. Entrance to the team meant that you would be going through the hardest, toughest, missions, and you would make it back to Konoha because Captain Wolf never left a shinobi behind.

~ Wolf yanked Tiger behind him as he ran, his blood-red scarf pooling behind him, trusting Weasel to cover him. Cat, Raven, and Mouse flanked them, occasionally twisting back to check on the enemy.

Team Ro was family. They knew each others' personal identities, quirks, personality, inside jokes. They protected each other with a fierce abandon that topped all other ANBU squads.

So when Raven spiraled down, all of the others stopped. Captain Wolf, not the oldest of them, but the one who'd been in ANBU the longest, quickly dove to throw Raven and himself out of the way.

An explosion followed, shattering eardrums and ripping apart the forest around them.

"What are we going to do?" Cat gasped quietly, wearily.

It had been stunning how quickly the seemingly simple mission had fell apart.

Wolf chewed on his lower lip behind the masks.

"And don't you dare to even _think_ about staying behind, taichou. Either we all go or nobody does," Tiger and Weasel, the two youngest members, said in unison.

Wolf gave a barking laugh, "Am I that predictable?"

Mouse snickered under his breath, "Do you really want us to answer that?"

"...No... no, I guess not. I walked into that one, didn't I?"

"Yup," Raven said cheerfully.

Cat rolled her eyes and sighed, "Boys. But seriously- now what?"

"Well," Wolf got serious, "There are 18 shinobi with unknown allegiances after us. The best action we can take would be to send out a decoy... seeing as there are only six of us."

"I saw a glimpse of their hitai-ate. I've never seen the symbol before... it looked like four rings joined together in a straight line," Weasel said quickly.

Wolf narrowed his eyes. That description seemed familiar... but he couldn't place it; which was surprising as he had incredible memory.

He dismissed it quickly for further analysis later, and told Weasel, "Good eye. I don't know what village it symbolizes either- it could be new. We will have to capture one alive for interrogation... which complicates things.

"Listen closely... We'll have a decoy lead some of the shinobi away. Then another will create a diversion long enough for us to capture one enemy-nin and make a quick escape. It's not the best plan... and there will probably be some deviation according to how the enemy reacts," Wolf pulled out a map and traced the contents with a finger even as wind whipped at the thin paper.

"I'm the least injured and the fastest," Raven decided, "I'll be the decoy." He ran next to Wolf and peered at the map. Wolf grimaced, but it was the best logical decision. He pointed to where they were, then outlined possible routes.

"Yea, and I'll tail you just in case something goes wrong," Mouse said with a smirk.

"Hey! I resent that! Of course nothing will go wrong, you...!"

"With my Mokuton, I can create the best diversion," Tiger stated.

Wolf nodded.

"I'll capture one of the nin with my genjutsu," Weasel offered, "Just cover me."

"I'll shield you," Cat said confidently, "And you too, Tiger."

Tiger's eye twitched.

"OK then... I guess I'll just do whatever else and step in for backup..." Wolf sighed, "Fine, then, disperse."

~As soon as Raven and Mouse disappeared, Wolf motioned to Tiger, "They are two kilometers away."

Quickly, Raven't voice crackled on the wireless radio, "Three are pursuing me, but I had killed one. I'm trying to wheel back to get more but they are cautious. Mouse wants to reveal himself to get more to seek him. Orders?"

"Where are you?" Wolf asked.

"Northwest to the Valley of the End, about one kilometer up the Ishikari creek. They are using strange jutsu- I've never seen anything like it before!"

Wolf scowled, "No, have Mouse stay put. 14 against four... it doesn't matter. Take out as many as you can without dying. If it's none, that's fine."

"Are you sure? I can-"

Suddenly, the radio crackled and fizzled.

"Raven? Raven, can you hear me? Raven!" Wolf cursed under his breath as he tried to regain contact.

"I'm going to reach Mouse," Cat said sharply, fingering her own radio.

She listened for a few seconds before muttering, "Mouse says Raven got a faceful of acid. He's down. Mouse had to expose himself. He... he left Raven. Under a dead tree. But he's killed one, and another nin has gone to chase Mouse. Orders? Are we to diverge from the original plan?"

Logically, Wolf should leave Raven and focus on the mission, but he couldn't let a teammate die. Not again.

"Cat, make a shadow clone."

Wolf slashed his palm, "Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

The pack appeared with a puff.

"Pakkun, you know Raven. Lead Cat to him. The rest of the pack, protect them. If you smell a enemy nin, do not engage unless they attack you. Scatter."

The dogs and the kage bunshin disappeared.

"Come on. Let's keep going," Wolf bit into a soldier pill.

They first realized the enemy had caught up when silent-as-night senbon was shot at Tiger. Tiger could dodge only because he saw the moonlight reflecting off the dark, smooth metal.

The team of four spun around and lowered defensively, gloved hands gripping various weapons. There were supposed to be 13... only five were shown. The rest must be hidden.

"I told you to get the non-reflective senbon, you miserable fool!" One of them snarled irritably.

"Hey! It was nearly four times more expensive!" Another snapped back.

The shortest one held up a hand, "Stop arguing, you imbeciles. This is Friend-killer Kakashi of the Sharingan, copier of thousands of ninjutsu, protege of the late Yondaime Hokage, son of the legendary White Fang, youngest genin, chunin, jounin, and ANBU to ever be inducted in the Hidden Continent, and Captain of the best ANBU squad there is- not to mention the only Mokuton-user and the rising prodigy of the Uchiha clan." His pale yellow-green eyes narrowed.

Wolf set his jaw. How did that shinobi know all that?

The one who had argued at the beginning sneered, "That scarecrow guy could only do all that because of the Sharingan!"

"Don't underestimate the shinobi, Misaki. It could be your doom," The seemingly leader warned, "He was out slitting throats before you even joined the academy. And the Sharingan only lets you follow the movements of anyone closely and see left over chakra.

"There's a reason why other Uchiha have not been ever known to copy thousands of jutsu like Kakashi. It's up to the user to be able to remember what he sees. So he had to remember all the hand seals for the thousands of techniques correctly. Sharingan no Kakashi is very intelligent, and his speed is impeccable."

Misaki's eye twitched, "I didn't ask for a thorough analysis of some white-haired brat, Ruuki."

"Well, you got one anyway. Now be quiet; they're attacking!"

Too late- Wolf had already skewered Misaki. He wheeled around for Ruuki, but the leader showed to be faster. In one sharp movement, he kicked Tiger away. Weasel caught Tiger as Cat rushed forward.

"So the little kitty cat wants to play?" Ruuki crooned. Another random shinobi was felled by Wolf's katana, but Ruuki didn't even twitch. His dark eyes stayed fixed on the violet-haired kunoichi.

"Don't patronize me," Cat hissed as she rushed forward, her katana a deadly silver arc in front of her.

Behind her, Wolf had already killed over a half of the opposing force. The hidden shinobi had revealed themselves after Wolf had attacked, but Wolf, Tiger, and Weasel were methodically cutting them down as Cat engaged Ruuki in a fierce fight.

Cat twisted and weaved between Ruuki's chakra-charged brass knuckles, the metal gleaming dully between each blow. Likewise, Ruuki danced through Cat's blade, smiling wickedly all the while.

Suddenly, he looked up as if he'd seen some sort of signal.

"Well," Ruuki said, smirking, "It was fun playing with you, but really I must go." He held out his hand, and his remaining shinobi all jumped back before disappearing. Cat began to charge forward, but was stopped by a pale hand on her shoulder.

"We must look for Raven and Mouse."

~ "How curious," Sandaime said slowly, stroking his beard, "Four rings, you said?"

"Indeed." Wolf was the only one in the office; the others were at the hospital visiting Raven, who was now scarred across his left cheek and through the bridge of his nose. Raven had actually been a bit embarrassed, as the acid had caught him unaware.

"Well then," Sandaime signed a piece of paper, "I assign you on a solo mission to collect intelligence on the strange symbol on that shinobi's headband. I expect a full report when you come back."

Wolf tried to conceal his shock. While it was not rare that one should be sent on missions back-to-back, he was surprised that Sandaime had deemed the symbol important enough to send him on a reconnaissance mission in the middle of a war where they were already low on troops.

"Hai, Hokage-sama," Wolf bowed briefly before standing up from his customary crouch. With a low fizz of lightning, he disappeared.


End file.
